Comino Island Malta

Comino is a very small island—only a little over a mile wide and about a mile in length. It is located between the two largest islands of Malta and Gozo. There is a private heliport on the island that you can only use if you have chartered a flight. These are almost always sightseeing flights that may drop you off to enjoy a day on its pristine beaches or hiking on this pristine and virtually uninhabited island. Comino Island Malta is not where you come if you're looking for nightlife or numerous services, but it is the perfect place to come for day trips or quiet getaway vacations.

Other than the relatively expensive option of a chartered helicopter, Comino travel is possible only by boat. Boat trips to Comino Island Malta can be sailing trips that originate from as far away as Sicily or from one of the two larger islands. Fishing and scuba diving trips are also popular. All of the islands, including several of the completely uninhabited ones that are little more than rocks, have great diving spots. But Comino has some of the best, and this is one of the most popular things to do on Comino that draws so many visitors. There are several dive sites that are good for all experience levels, and you can explore underwater canyons, chimneys, and caves.

The other Comino travel you can enjoy by boat is on one of the numerous day trips that drop tourists off to explore the famous Blue Lagoon and sun themselves on the beaches along the northwestern side of the island. It is the Blue Lagoon with its sheltered cove and impossibly turquoise waters that is the main draw of this little island, and you can find a boat to take you for the day in both Malta and Gozo. If your Comino travel has brought you in search of Comino hotels, this is where you will find the only one. The Comino Hotel and Bungalows was built in the 1960s and boasts two private beaches with a number of water sports available. There are a few other beaches (virtually deserted ones) in some of the secluded inlets on the other side of the island, and these are sometimes used for picnic lunch sites by divers and boaters.

Because of its unique geology and lack of development, Comino Island Malta serves as a bird sanctuary with unique flora that protects rare and endangered species. This is not a rigorously protected sanctuary, and there are few restrictions on where you can wander. So, it is possible to enjoy great independent hiking here during day tours. There are a few historic landmarks you can use as your destination points during a hiking excursion, including the still functioning Chapel of the Holy Family Upon its Return from Egypt, erected in 1618. On the southern coast is a semi-circular military battery built in 1716.

Comino also boasts a remarkably preserved and famously scenic structure that has played a part in the history of the country. St Mary's Tower was built by the famous Knights of Malta (also known as the Knights Hospitaller) also in 1618. Originally, it was one of a chain of similar fortified watchtowers that protected the island from marauding pirates and kept poachers off the favored hunting ground of the Knights. You might recognize this historic structure as the infamous Chateau d'If prison from the film The Count of Monte Cristo. The real prison is located in the bay off the city of Marseilles in France.